Santas to examine David Lean films

George Lucas and Steven Spielberg have something in common. They’ve both cited one man as a major source of inspiration in their work: the great David Lean. Lean has long been recognized as one of the greatest film directors of all time, known for such classic epic films as “The Bridge on the River Kwai,” “Lawrence of Arabia,” “Doctor Zhivago” and “A Passage to India.”

Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. Dr. Constantine Santas will discuss his latest book “The Epics of David Lean” in the Gamache-Koger Theater in the Ringhaver Student Center at Flagler College, 50 Sevilla St. Santas is professor emeritus and former chair in the Flagler department of English. He is also the author of “Responding to Film” and “The Epic in Film: from Myth to Blockbuster.”

Santas says he has long been fascinated with the epic film and with Lean’s work in particular. And with good reason: widely regarded as one of cinema’s most accomplished directors, Lean twice received the Academy Award for best director, and two of his films, “The Bridge on the River Kwai” and “Lawrence of Arabia” won the Oscar for best picture. Both are featured on the American Film Institute’s Top 100.

But despite the awards and accolades for these motion pictures, many critics often look more favorably upon the smaller films that Lean produced earlier in his career, and in recent years his reputation as a director has diminished.

“The idea for this book started back in the 1990s, when I read a paper on ‘The Bridge on the River Kwai,’ at a Flagler Colloquium, sponsored by the English Department, under Professor Carl Horner,” remembers Santas. “I was drawn by the artistic values of the epics of David Lean, several of which I taught in my film classes regularly. One particular aspect of the epics that gave me food for thought was that all of them were derived from literary sources. That fact motivated me to connect literature, T.E. Lawrence’s “Seven Pillars of Wisdom,” for instance, which became the basis for “Lawrence of Arabia,” with film studies.”

Santas credits an ongoing fascination with the epics, as well as the assistance of the Flagler community, with helping him to write the book.

The event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis. Persons with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations are asked to contact call 819-6460. Call 819-6339 or visit www.flagler.edu/our-community/events/writers-in-residence for more information.